10.31.2007

Arp

A hypnotic debut from Alexis Georgopoulos, one of the craftsmen behind Tussle; who's now struck out on his own in an attempt to bridge the electronic and organic gap. Despite its warm throb and krauty repetition, most of In Light was recorded live, without the use of loops. The album originally accompanied an instillation Georgopoulos worked on with architect Kyu Che. The album's basis in analog synthesizers and a few other sparse instruments along with the live productions brings a rough edge to the often icy world of electronics. In Light totters between engulfing serenity and an unease that picks at the back of your mind telling you that this feeling of safety is fleeting, if not dangerous. The entire album is wrapped with a dystopian otherworldliness that is hard to pin down and even harder to ignore; a great leap forward for Gerogopoulos.

10.30.2007

Looks like the Jukebox is stuck on repeat a bit today. The 60's were a time when bands played covers so often that they became veritable standards. A few songs were particular to the garage set (think Louie, Louie/ Money) but Buffy Sainte-Marie's Cod'ine became a crossover from garage on into psych mainly due to its heavily drug oriented lyrics and story of redemption. Despite her original being a very strident folk song, it did lend itself well to harder interpretations and still continues to be a favorite today (I last recall Oakley Hall doing a pretty great version). So for better or worse, here's Codine presented by the Jukebox. *note the song is spelled Cod'ine but many of the artists do drop the apostrophe.

[MP3] Buffy Sainte-Marie - Cod'ineThe original song as a folk anthem to the perils of drug addiction and the depths of desperation that it lead to. For all her soap box folk anthems, this tortured epic still remains one of her most striking songs to date.

[MP3] Charlatans - CodineThis San Francisco psych group sped up the tempo, put some swing into it, but added a nice touch of effected guitar officially transitioning it into psych territory. Their version lacks a bit of the desperation and clocking in just around 2 minutes, really makes the song into more of a pop tune than was probably ever intended.

[MP3] Gram Parsons - CodineA bit of a scratchy outtake, but fair nonetheless. Parsons keeps the song pretty straight forward folk but for all the ways that Gram probably could have sympathized with the content he doesn't dig in nearly as much as Buffy does on the original. Classic GP but it would have been interesting to here a version done in the true spirit of country psych he would come to later embody.

[MP3] Quicksilver Messanger Service - CodineAnother San Fran staple grabs this tune and makes it their own. The harmonized vocals really do the song justice and Quicksilver's long impassioned jam style fits like it was made for this song.

[MP3] The Wizards From Kansas - CodineThe band weren't from San Francisco but they played up the style nicely. Their version also takes a psych bent on the song but with a much heavier fuzz quotient than any of the other versions. The guitars are filled with anguish, even more so than the Quicksilver version which is a testament to the skill that this often overlooked band possessed.

[MP3] 31st of February - Cod'ineClocking in at over 6 minutes, this version takes the most long winded psych approach to the number. The vocals can't quite reach that state of degradation and pain that the best covers do, but the psych accoutrements make a nice addition to the song.

10.29.2007

Theo Angell & The Tabernacle Hillside Singers

Settling comfortably but not complacently into his role as a folk troubadour, Theo Angell's latest release Auraplinth is a twisting, creaking riverbed tussle into the bowels of folk and the roots of blues. Finding a nice home amongst noisemakers and string pickers at Digitalis, Angell has disentangled himself from his former affiliations with Hall of Fame and JOMF. This record is dark and knotted but Angell's voice remains clear and sure above the mild clatter of strings. Gone are the murky vocal waters and tortured electronics, instead Angell and the Tabernacle work a bit of the comunal vibe; warm and inviting at its sweetest times, haunted and cautionary at its darkest. Quite honestly the most endearing work I've heard from Angell yet, a record that plays more with songs than the structure of sound, however a bit of his past can be heard on the vocal catscratch of "Flurid Mourning" amongst other digressions throughout. Angell has sweetened, but the weight of his songs still hit just as hard.

10.26.2007

Now admittedly I've never really been into dubstep. I work with a guy who's always trying to sell me on it but up to now I just haven't seen the merit. It seems that tomorrow I have to tell Joe that, "Yes perhaps there is something to this after all."

Snares (Venetian Snares) - Sabbath Dubs 10"Maybe the reason I never dug dubstep was because, until now no one had decided to make a doomed out dub version of Black Sabbath. Skewing away from their glitch laden catalog, Venetian Snares (here just

listed as Snares) take Black Sabbath to the dub plate and the results are nothing short of amazing. Slowing the tempo and upping Sabbath's already naturally heavy bass sound, then squeezing Ozzy through about 10 layers of reverb, brilliant. This project winds up much more than any hacked remix could have offered. This is subliminal Sabbath.

Caribou - Tour CD

Following suit with his previous album's priceless addendum, Dan Snaith has again made a tour only release that complements his latest work on Andorra perfectly. Tour CD 2007 again shows Snaith's mindset with a mix of songs that are as varied as the ingredients that make up Andorra and then segues nicely into a few bonus tracks that although not quite as vocal as the album still show that he doesn't scrape together throwaways for these releases. Some beautiful moments of throb and shimmer here that only add to the reasons that you should check out the Caribou experience in the live setting.

10.25.2007

Refrigerator Mothers

Deriving their name from a fifties term that blamed Autism on poor parenting, this rotating collective of 20 odd players is led by Carl F. Off. Delving into the darker side of the middle-eastern tonality and splicing it up with ample use of percussion, effects and some electronic trickery, Ghosts of a Primitive World sounds surprisingly similar to just what the title suggests. Voices fade and chant, the constant thunder of drums threatens, drones rumble menacingly; a market tableau rises into vision and is shrewdly scrambled by electronic interference. I'd have to say that these chaps have read up on their Sun City Girls and Current 93 while staking out their own right in the narrow display of twisted world influences. Head on over to hop-frog to pick this one up. .

10.24.2007

Though I prefer the full album or vinyl reviews it does occur to me that every once in a while I do get items and information that just don't fit that format. So when these do float through my daily life I'll post them under the title of "Loose Flotsam;" a forum for news and noteworthy items that come RSTB's way.

* Blood on the Wall have confirmed the release date for their next album Liferz as January 22nd. I thoroughly enjoyed the crunch and spazz of their last release so look for a full review as this one nears.

* Liars have released 4 track studio session of demos for free download. These tracks were recorded around the same time as the latest album and give an early picture of the songs in formation. The session includes the following tracks.

*This also remided me that I was remiss in discussing the accompanying 4 track Liars Radio session that came with a few copies of the S/T album. This radio session contained alternate live versions of the songs:

White Magic

White Magic continue their tradition of teasing us with short and powerful releases. Their latest EP, Dark Stars has only four tracks but as usual the power of Mira Billotte's voice is as entrancing as it is powerful. The band continues to interject a sense of mystery and darkness into piano pop, fashioning a baroque psychedelia that's much more ephemeral than effect driven. The EP will be out on Drag City, home of their previous LP Dat Rosa Mel Apibus at the end of October and features some wonderful artwork so naturally you should spring for the 12", right?

It's well about time for another mix tape and this one's a snapshot of the Elephant 6 Recording Co. an institution that I've been a fan of for quite some time. The list is by no means definitive, hell everybody's got a favorite E6 song I'm sure, but it gives a pretty good feel for the output over the years. Featuring tracks from The Apples In Stereo, Neutral Milk Hotel, Olivia Tremor Control,

10.23.2007

Maybe we'll take a break and wander back to the softer side of psych this week (but I'll revisit the harder stuff don't worry). With all the more upbeat albums that were lost in the flood of an emerging psychedelic movement it should probably come as no surprise that some delicate classics became criminally overlooked. Hell, even Odyssey and Oracle was considered a commercial failure, what chance did lesser known bands have?

The End - Introspection Produced by the Rolling Stones' Bill Wyman right around the time of Their Satanic Majesties Request, this album showed much promise but never really hit its stride commercially. It is considered a far more important album today than it

ever was at the time of its release. A mix of dreamy Zombies-esque psych pop and slight acid tinged ephemera, the album also features two songs co-written by Wyman and some help on tabla from Charlie Watts. A shame that the band didn't take off, this album shows the beginning of what could have been a fruitful career.

Gandalf - Gandalf This New York group produced some delicate baroque-psych tunes that melded the beautiful with the spacey. Again, somewhat overlooked at the time, this album has now become a collectors favorite. The sound falls between the Zombies/ Left Banke

sound and the work that Curt Boetecher was doing with Sagittarius and Millennium. There are a few missteps on the album, but overall it's a wonderful, lilting album of soft pop-psych. Perhaps this wasn't really meant for mass consumption, but it didn't deserve the obscurity it faced upon initial release.

10.22.2007

Witchcraft

If you told me that Witchcraft's album The Alchemist was recorded in 1974 I probably wouldn't think you were lying. The Swedish band's latest album is heavy, proggy and dark in the best of terms; building off of a heady base of Black Sabbath but interjecting some lighter moments that recall Pentagram's knotty acoustics. On top of this the band splice some truly prog-worthy organ riffs that along with a bit of the lyrical content steer just this side of cheesy. However, it's all a great homage and done with keen attention to detail. Witchcraft aren't so much deriving from these other bands as they are living out of time. This is metal the way it was before Northern Europe went to Black Metal, the way American and British bands used to play before over the top production and too much testosterone filled the genre. Witchcraft may not be saving metal but they've definitely taken a step back toward the heyday of rock.

10.19.2007

Expo '70

After RSTB's last encounter with the one man wonder that is Expo '70 and his soul crushing drones, Justin contacted me and hooked me up with a few more gems from his ever expanding catalog and I gotta tell you it seems that the man has struck a sympathetic tone with the universe. Just previous to his first "official" album, Animisim Wright laid some improvisations down to tape with compatriot McKinley Jones, the results of which are Mystical Amplification, and a better title could not fit these four heavy documents. Reportedly warmed up over two days and recorded straight in one shot, the four pieces on Mysical Amplification are certainly a testament to Wright's skills. Looser than Animism, the tracks wade much further into the psych territory, with hazed fretwork washing over the dark thunder of drone and restrained feedback lapping at the edges of the din. If you get a chance head over to Aquarius and check out their selection as they're one of the only tickets that are serving up Expo '70 right now.

10.18.2007

White Rainbow

Yarn Lazer head honcho and all around collaborator extraordinaire Adam Forkner's White Rainbow gets its due in a dual release on Kranky(CD) and Marriage Recs (Vinyl). Forkner paved the way in Yume Bitsu and lent his hand to multiple projects including Dirty Projectors and JOMF, and though this is the biggest label that White Rainbow has graced he's been cranking the quality out for some time now. Seeing as his last release was a 5CD box clocking in at over 4 1/2 hours, Prism of Eternal Now seems brief at only 71 minutes but it packs in plenty of earth core vibrations and neo-psych wanderlust into its tracks. Forkner is a mastermind at letting his works flow like movements in one long piece and Prism is no exception; it washes like dream states over the listener so that you hardly notice time has passed before the sun rises and the dream is broken. A deep R.E.M. sleep-state that pulses with colors and flashes inexplicable and inexorable scenes onto the back of your eyelids.

10.17.2007

Citay

I've been waiting for a follow up ever since Citay released their debut a couple of years back. The band make the move from Important to SC/Jagjaguwar imprint Dead Oceans and again grace us with a peaceful slice of folk/rock that carves a unique piece out of the 70's rock canon. Finding a nice niche among the softest and most acoustic heavy moments of Led Zeppelin and blending this with the clean electric leads, the band that started as Tim Green's (Fucking Champs) side project has grown legs and then some; the live band has expanded to include friends from Tussle, Crime In Choir, The Dry Spells, By Land And Sea, 3 Leafs, Galactic Bunz, Horn of Dagoth and Sweet Potatoes. Perfectly sun-dappled and soaked with the morning dew, Little Kingdom is a natural extension of Citay's debut, riding the same wave without sounding like they've duplicated themselves. SC is pretty tight with their tracks so just the one will have to do but do yourself a favor and pick up the album on Nov. 6th.

10.16.2007

Digging into another batch of the harder side of the 70's, these are two bands from the European side of the pond with a flair for heavy guitar that swept in the wave of proto-metal. Enjoy!

Toad - Toad This Swiss power trio (+ enlisted vocalist for this album) has been given much credit for ushering in the wave of metal that followed after the band's single "Stay" crept up the charts. Bluesy but with a real dual punch from the guitar and bass

of Vic Vergeat and Werner Frolich respectively; this album definitely slots itself in under the "lost classic" heading. Heavy and fierce but with surprisingly little bravado, this is the album that started the band on a short journey that ended too soon with 1974's Dreams. A great place to introduce yourself to the history of Swiss rock.

The Storm - The Storm A heavy bluesy album from this Spanish band, with loads of organ and some fierce vocals. It rides the line without really traipsing into "progressive" territory. Mostly this LP is just balls out fun rock that totters off the rails the way all good records

should. It slows for some softer jazz inflected tunes but these really pale in comparison to the rockers that anchor The Storm and give meaning to its namesake. This here is a one of the finest examples of Spanish hard psych the period had to offer.

10.15.2007

MV + EE with the Golden Road

Finally gracing the speakers of my stereo, this highly anticipated follow up to the band's Green Blues far surpasses expectations. Gettin' Gone twists up the Bummer Road sound, adding some very heavy moments to the mix and some very blissed out ones as well. This record feels like Valentine and Elder have really embraced the group aesthetic on record, having toured with many of the players for the past few months. J. Mascis and John Moloney both add some needed kick on the drums, and Valentine has really embraced his role as a guitarist making the Golden Road one hell of a rock band despite their humble folk origins. Fuzzed green vibes verdant shades of purple dawn from the northeast, distilled down only the way MV + EE can, and rolled out down the road to those not lucky enough to spend their days ensconced in porch jams and woodstove smoke. You gotta pick this one up, another great slab from Ecstatic Peace!

10.12.2007

Coming a long way without the benefit of their most recognizable member's contributions, Múm return with an album that is both delicate and forceful. This first single acts as a nice doorway to the new Múm sound.

Múm - They Made Frogs Smoke 'Til They Exploded 7"Expanding their scope into delicate traces of samples that reveal both the innocent nature of their music and the complexity with which it's made; this debut single captures the band's charming sense of whimsy. The elfin

vocals may be gone but the band prove that there's much more to their swirling inner child romps than they've often been given credit for. The b-side is a non album track that teems with the pulse of a mis-spliced film strip; a wonderful accompaniment to the album.

The Warlocks

After an uneventful foray into (semi)major label territory and the hardly mentionable album, Surgery that was the result, it seems that The Warlocks are heading back towards their former promise. Hooking up with fuzzed psyche homestead Tee Pee Records, the band have taken their usual bite out of the MBV/ Jesus and Mary Chain catalogues and kept their overt pop tendencies under check. Heavy Deavy Skull Lover rides an opiate cloud of haze over a pretty steady stream of shoegaze melodies and washed out blues. A nice addition of atmospherics as they flesh out the band to a well rounded 7 members. I'd always been a fan of the band's Phoenix album and it's nice to see them wander back to that era's territory.

10.11.2007

Tom Brosseau

Another rift in time from Tom Brosseau, who in terms of sheer weight of songwriting and powerfully unmodern approach I always feel is a real kindred spirit to Jolie Holland and Marissa Nadler. His latest album Cavalier keeps up his tradition of masking a bit of a dark side under angelic delivery and blond locks. Recorded with the help of John Parish, whose influence really can't be felt all that much on this album as its nothing if not sparse but in the most beguiling of terms. This welcome lack of production keeps the focus where it deserves to be, on Tom's voice and his solemnly plucked guitar. I had the pleasure of seeing him live not too long ago and though he was visibly shy and a bit nervous, the charm and ease of his songs come seeping out the walls while he sings. A wonderful performer if you get the chance.

10.10.2007

MV + EE

Until I can get my hands on the new MV + EE with The Bummer (ne Golden) Road this nice tidbit of a homespun release called Eye in the Pines on their own Child of Microtones label will hold me over. Matt and Erika, here without any heavy backing lay down rainy country space ballads with a dash of gospel laced talkin' blues fried hazy by the southern sun. There's blood on the road and breeze in the trees all throughout these tracks as has come to mark many of their releases. The fuzz cranks up for one long centerpiece that lifts the spirit out of the hills and into the clouds before the record lays back down in the grass on its way out. A mighty fine offering from the couple that make the word prolific seem horribly in adequate and from what I've tasted of the new Ecstatic Peace! full length, this one is going to tear Green Blues up.

10.09.2007

Continuing its journey through the bowels of the past, the jukebox grabs some bits of psych, garage and blues-rock to tide you over once again.

[MP3] The Chocolate Watchband -Are You Gonna Be There (At The Love In)An anthemic slice of garage that virtually cements The Chocolate Watchband's status, this track bridges the garage and burgeoning hippie movements. A huge chorus and some frayed guitar anchor this track and the strained vocals bring it all 'round nicely.

[MP3] The Association -Pandora's Golden Heebie JeebiesThe Association wouldn't have been best remembered for their contributions to psychedelia, but as with many established pop acts as the movement took hold they gave the form a try. This track has some soaring harmonies and dark lyricism. A great slice of pop-psych.

[MP3] Whistler, Chaucer, Detroit and Greenhill -Live Till I DieThis album has recently popped up on a few lists of great unheard records, mostly due to the aid of then fledgling producer T-Bone Burnett. While the album is a little uneven it does have its fair share of decent tunes. Picking up on the blues resurgence this one cops a nice laid back feel and thrives on a pretty consistent harmonica line.

[MP3] The Electric Prunes-Ain't It HardWith a nice quaver a la the 13th Floor Elevators, this non-album Electric Prunes track bridges the garage-psych formulas nicely. A ringing guitar is nicely complemented by some spacey keys and a chug of harmonica.

[MP3] The Peanut Butter Conspiracy -It's a Happening Thing (Removed by Request of the Artist)If they weren't so sincere, this would border on a psychsploitation anthem, but despite the trite lyrics and movement in a can title this track has some nice squelches of fuzz. Anchored by the male-female harmonies and a driving bass line, this is a nice piece of the second tier of the summer of love.

10.08.2007

Six Organs of Admittance

Another fine platter of hushed fuzz and splintered frets from Ben Chasney's mainstay, Six Organs of Admittance. Still channeling the dark lonesome spirits of some wooded acre, Chasney lays the vibes down heavy on Shelter from the Ash, a release that contrary to the title feels less easy than "shelter" might suggest. Heavy overtones of darkness and, if not fear certainly not calm pervade this album but maybe that's the point, its only a respite from the ongoing struggle and not permanent relief. Gentle strums and plucks give way to fuzzed electrics and atmospherics raging with wind and white noise. Definitely an album in tune with much that Chasney has issued under his Six Organs persona, but with a much more turbulent undercurrent than he's touched on in the past. Shelter is a fine album that stands as striking in the face of some disappointment with other frontrunners of the folk circle this year.

10.05.2007

As mentioned, this seems to be a heavy switch for a man mired in a past of metal and weaned out on the heavier side of post rock and as has now become the case, these splits are turning out great pairings of artists working outside of the bounds of their normal constraints. Here's to hoping that Temporary Residence and Hydra Head keep up the series.

Jesu/Eluvium - Split 12"Matthew Cooper lets his cinematic side play out on a side length track that more than proves his merit once again. The real surprise here is how light, and beat oriented the Jesu tracks are. For a man who's spent a great deal of time in a thick metallic

haze, this kind of clarity can make one check the label twice. A great foray into the bowels of shoegaze and a taste of the changes that were to come in Broadrick's music.

Jesu

Justin Broadrick has certainly steered his Jesu project into poppier waters in the past couple of releases. Still retaining the murky feeling of August heat, Broadrick has injected the heavy rumble of Jesu with the insistent pulse of a pop song, flinging this EP far out of the post-rock waters he's so often waded in. These songs act very much as a companion piece to the recently released split with Eluvium and mirror their lighter style and emphasis on vocals, though Lifeline doesn't hinge as much on programming as the split. While I applaud Broadrick for expanding his palette, the shift almost seems like a completely different project; in mood, scope and direction, which may draw some grumbles from any hangers on from the band's and Broadrick's more metal oriented days. History aside, these tracks are some fairly decent fuzzed out pop swirls, though I'm not entirely sure how to place the dynamic shift in with the fact that the final song is called "End of the Road." Maybe a change is in the works.

10.04.2007

Sunburned Circle

The next hallowed collaboration was born when American ambassadors of skronk Sunburned Hand of the Man toured Europe and ended up in the same room as the leaders of the NWOFHM (New Wave of Finnish Heavy Metal), Circle; though this seems to lean towards Circle's ambient kraut-frequencies of late rather than anything that could be called metal. The improvised session was cut down to 40-minutes to keep your head from exploding from the sonic tension that permeated the set. Free kraut weirdness flows into dark atmospherics and sinister noodles with a nice dose of Finnish incantations that chill the blood. The Blaze Game as with the AMGG collaboration in no way sounds like this is the first time these two have played together, which still makes it all the more impressive that it is. Sunburned's pulse sets fire to Circle's icy atmosphere and the results couldn't have worked out more perfect. The disc is out on Conspiracy Records home to The Skull Defects and Growing.

10.03.2007

AcidMothersGuruGuru

This is a great week for collaborations here at RSTB. First off, a team up of epic proportions spanning two generations of psychedelic mischief; Kawabata Makoto and Tsuyama Atsushi of Acid Mother's Temple have hooked up with 70's krautrock icon Mani Neumeier of Guru Guru. With Mani layin' down the beats and Makoto on the guitar there's no way this thing could fail. Following a brief tour of Japan the trio laid down Psychedelic Navigator a live mass of fluid space madness that proves the pedigree of the individuals involved aptly. The three seem so in tune to each other it's a shock that they haven't been playing together for years, the album in no way seems rehearsed but it definitely lacks in sloppy moments. Clocking in at just around an hour and seeing light from the hallowed grounds of Important Records. Definitely a well earned footnote in psychedelic history.

10.02.2007

A recent comment on a reader's preference for the heavy or "weird" sides of psychedelia reminded me that it has been a while since any proto-metal/ bluesy psychedelia had made it into this feature. Both bands here came off to little fanfare but represent two different sides of what was, at the time an emerging heavy British rock sound.

Sam Gopal - Escalator The band is named for their tabla player, but any subsequent fame has been as a result of singer and guitarist Lemmy Kilminster of Hawkwind and Motorhead fame. As if the previous mention of a tabla player wasn't hint enough, the band

dabbled in the eastern influences of psychedelia, but mixed it with at driving blues sound and the raspy delivery of Kilminster (credited as Ian Willis here). At the best points this mixture falls well into the "Planet Caravan" sounds of Sabbath. The man with the meanest handlebar stash in rock really takes all the credit for this one, as his touches are the most endearing parts of the record but this mind you is a much softer Lemmy than you may have encountered before.

Dark - Round The Edges Mixing a folky approach with tricky fuzzed solos, Dark's sole album didnt' fall on too many ears when it was released. This, however lies less in quality than to the fact that it was released in a pressing of 60 copies. This scarcity has driven the

collector's price absurdly high for originals. Prices notwithstanding, the LP has some great moments of early British hard rock and the fuzz tone combined with a great balance of intricacy and melody make it a pretty great listen all the way through. It does indulge in an almost proggy tendency to let songs wander a bit long but even this can be forgive, it was an common tactic of the time period. Recent reissues are pretty nice, even replicating the gatefold (gotta love those Akarma gatefold reissues) and alleviate the necessity of taking out a small loan to get the chance to listen.

10.01.2007

Shepherds

Here's a team up that seems just perfect, the Woods/Meneguar contingent has hooked up with members of the Vanishing Voice to create the free-kraut-uber-jam document Loco Hills. Shepherds began with members of both camps floating in and out of realeases but mainly centered around Jeremy Earl (Woods/Meneguar) and G. Lucas Crane (Non-Horse/Vanishing Voice). Expanding to a four piece and roping in Jarvis Taveniere (Meneguar, The Vanishing Voice) and Christian DeRoeck (Woods, Meneguar) the fellas capture a krautrock space journey of a live-to-tape jam session that spans the gamut from formless noise to high fueled propulsive groove nuggets. The disc is limited to 500 and so far only apparently available abroad. Check out Release the Bats for more info and the highly (ok well sorta) amusing video for "Revenge."